


Frustrations

by meyari



Category: DCU - Comicverse
Genre: Ableism, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-04-02
Updated: 2011-04-02
Packaged: 2017-10-17 11:48:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 401
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/176549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meyari/pseuds/meyari
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for the following prompt: DC Universe, Barbara Gordon (Oracle), ableism.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Frustrations

There were a thousand little frustrations in life. Barbara was used to that. She'd dealt with them for years, first as plain old Barb, then as Batgirl and now as Oracle. Still, she'd found a whole new level of frustration once she was consigned to the wheelchair.

The cabinet shelves in her kitchen were as far out of reach as if they were on Mars. Her sink was 90% inaccessable because of the storage cabinet underneath it. Going to the bathroom was a challenge best left unremarked on. But none of that was all that bad. She'd gotten pull down racks for the cabinets, letting her use them fully. Getting rid of the cabinet had only taken a quick call to Dick and supplying him with some tools. Cleaning up the mess he left had taken a while but Barb didn't mind that. Much.

No, the biggest frustration she'd encountered since losing the function in her legs only showed itself once she went outside: other people. So many people pretended she wasn't there. Others acted as though she was a child and a stupid one at that. Barbara couldn't count how many people presumed that they needed to push her around instead of realizing that they had to ask first.

The steps that blocked her way weren't half as annoying as the people who acted as if she were incapable of doing things for herself. If one more person threw her off by holding a door open for her when she'd built the perfect amount of momentum to open it herself she was going to scream.

Still, it wasn't all bad. Some people got it. They asked first or just asked if she needed help with anything. A rejection was met with a cheerful smile instead of confused frowns that implied that she didn't know what she actually needed. And when she did ask for help the good people just did it without acting like they were being put upon.

Barb liked those people and made a point of surrounding herself with those who treated her like a person instead of a cripple trapped in a wheelchair that was more real than she was. She wasn't the chair. It was just her way of getting around, like Tim's bike or Dick's handsprings or Bruce's Batmobile. And once she got on the 'net there was no difference between her and anyone else.


End file.
